


You Give A Little Love, And It All Comes Back To You

by fallofthereichenbach



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Bugsy Malone Production, M/M, Theatre Play AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-05
Updated: 2015-09-06
Packaged: 2018-04-19 04:45:47
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,340
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4733234
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fallofthereichenbach/pseuds/fallofthereichenbach
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Arthur Pendragon is thrilled to find that he's been cast in the lead role of his school's performance of 'Bugsy Malone'.</p>
<p>However, when he finds that his rival, Merlin Emrys, has been cast as Bugsy's enemy, Dandy Dan, he is understandably pissed.</p>
<p>But after long nights of rehearsal and time together, are these two completely different boys starting to become friends?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Bugsy Malone is seriously one of my favourite films. Like I would seriously recommend it to anyone who hasn't watched it.
> 
> (Fun fact: I was going to be in a school production of Bugsy Malone before it got CANCELLED by my headmistress. Totally not bitter about that.)
> 
> Anyways, hope you enjoy this!

"Arthur! Arthur Pendragon! Arthur!"

A tall, blonde teacher wearing a very flowing cardigan swooshed through the crowds of students in her way. She was very dramatically chasing after one particular year 10 boy, Arthur Pendragon, whose bobbing blonde head could be seen at the end of the busy corridor, having stopped outside a classroom. Of course she was doing it dramatically, she was the head of the Drama department.

Eventually, she caught up with the boy.

"Hey, Miss Anhora! What's up?" Arthur asked.

"Arthur, the cast list has been up outside my classroom since this morning!" Said Miss Anhora, getting straight to the point and waving her hands around wildly.

"Oh. Sorry, I didn't realise."

"You were supposed to come to me by lunchtime to confirm that you were happy with the part you had been given!"

"... What part was I given?"

The stern look on Miss Anhora's face eased slightly, and she gave a small smile.

"Well, given the fact that you're the oldest male who auditioned, and the fact that I've taught you for four years, I decided that the lead role of the play should be good enough for you," she tried to look haughtily superior, but couldn't help grinning at the sight of Arthur's widened eyes.

"You mean... I got Bugsy?" 

"Yes. You got the lead role. Don't go letting me down now, Pendragon! Can you confirm that you will be able to play this role?"

"Yeah, of course!"

Miss Anhora gave a satisfied nod at the honest, pleasantly surprised look on Arthur's face. She'd been his Drama teacher since he first came to the school, and knew that for the most part she could trust him. He could be annoying, yes, but he was a good actor.

"Well then, I shall let you get to class. Unsurprisingly, I have more students to chase up about their upcoming roles. Our first rehearsal will be tomorrow after school. It is compulsory for all cast members; don't be late."

And, with a dramatic twirl and swish of cardigan, she was gone.

-

Arthur loved acting. He loved performing, he loved the costumes, he loved the atmosphere of a story being shown and spoken aloud. This was the first time his school had decided to put on an extra-curricular play and, needless to say, he was one of the first to sign up. The auditions weren't exactly fun - he was quizzed by one of the other Drama teachers on his performance skills, then they asked him to sing (Arthur wasn't the biggest fan of singing, but he had an alright voice and put enough effort and dramatic effect in it for it to work reasonably well). But he got through it okay.

He wasn't exactly the kind of person you'd expect to be a 'drama geek'. He was tall, strongly built, good at sports and popular. His dad would have much preferred for him to join a football team than a drama production, but that didn't stop Arthur.

Arthur was the sort of person who talked a lot: he liked making people laugh, and he was good at it. So, in that respect, Drama was the perfect subject for him. Teachers generally loved him or hated him - he was clever, but he knew it. Classes with Arthur were filled with sarcastic comments and arguments, which could end up being annoying for everyone. 

In general, he got on well with almost everyone. Almost every student in his year would laugh at his jokes. Almost every student in his year thought he was a pretty nice guy. Almost everyone he knew found him endearingly annoying, in a cheerful way.

Almost.

Basically everyone except some guy called Merlin. 

Merlin Emrys was someone who instantly disliked Arthur, and who Arthur had instantly disliked back. Neither of them knew who had started the first fight that had caused the all-out war between them, but both generally blamed each other. Either way, any time they spent together inevitably ended in snarky comments and heated debates.

Maybe it was because they had similar but altogether different personalities, but both of them had a vein of stubbornness and arrogance running through them. Merlin was quieter and worked harder in lessons ; he would somehow find a way to glare at Arthur and make sarcastic retorts, and write a three-page essay on how education had changed since the 1900's at the same time. On the other hand, Arthur loved nothing more than just spending a lesson irritating and being irritated by Merlin. His sarcastic retorts weren't muttered under his breath: they were broadcast to the whole class so that they could all marvel at his wit.

Unfortunately for both of them (and their teachers), for the past four years they had been in almost all of each other's classes.

Perhaps it was an effort on behalf of the school board to stop the rivalry between - maybe there was a secret hope that if the two students were forced to spend enough time together, eventually they'd learn to be friends.

-

Anyway, the next day Arthur showed up to rehearsals feeling excited and confident. He was going to be in an actual play - and he was playing the lead role!

He arrived early, which he didn't think it was possible to be since Miss Anhora had just said to meet straight after school. But he was the first student there, and the Drama teacher told him to wait while she went to see if she could round up anyone else.

So Arthur sat, leaning against the wall playing on his phone. He hoped that everyone would show up soon, because now that he was here he was eager to get going.

After a few minutes of sitting around, the door swung open. Arthur looked up hopefully, expecting to see Miss Anhora or some nervous 12 year old who was here to impress their parents.

 

Instead, a grumpy-looking Merlin Emrys stood in the doorway. Arthur rolled his eyes. Of freaking course.

"What are you doing here?" Asked Merlin, raising his eyebrows and looking at Arthur like he was some dirty, plague-infected insect.

"What are you doing here?" Arthur also asked, ignoring Merlin's question and looking back down at his phone.

"I asked first."

"Well, I was here first."

Merlin sighed and threw his bag down against the wall.

"I'm here for the Bugsy Malone rehearsals. Miss Anhora told me to come here."

Arthur groaned theatrically, and made a great show of burying his head in his hands, "Since when do you like Drama? So far it's been the only class of mine that you're not in. It's my only escape from the Curse of Merlin!"

"I'm guessing from your reaction that you're also here for rehearsals. I can only hope that my character ends up being able to shoot your character with a splurge gun."

"What the fuck is a splurge gun?"

"... Have you not seen the Bugsy Malone film?"

"No?"

"Oh my God, why did you even audition then? How are you expecting to even know what's happening?"

"Well, and this is just a guess, but I think we might be given these things called scripts that we read from a learn?" Arthur shot back sarcastically. So what if he hadn't watched the stupid film?

"Wow, you think? Anyway, splurge guns are the weapons that the two gangs use. They shoot custard cream stuff. It basically kills you."

"Right. Well, my character is the main character, so I don't really think you're going to be shooting him any time soon," Arthur said, with a note of pride in his voice (a note? More like a whole song).

"Hold up. You're playing the lead character? In a production of a film you've never watched? This is gonna be interesting!" Merlin smirked, and Arthur shifted slightly uncomfortably.

"Oh yeah, and who are you playing?" Arthur muttered back at him. Merlin grinned.

"Dandy Dan."

"What the fuck is a Dandy Dan?"

"Your character's worst enemy. Basically, he's the leader of the gang that you're fighting, and he's totally awesome."

Arthur rolled his eyes, and pretended to check his phone again. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Merlin sit down next to where he'd slung his bag - in the corner against the wall. About as far away as it was possible to be from Arthur, who was fine with that.

After about five minutes of awkward silence, the door opened again. This time, Miss Anhora swept in, with about thirty other people following behind her like ducklings. 

Arthur recognised a few of the people from his year. Morgana, Gwen, Gwaine (who went and sat next to Merlin, of all people!), Lancelot, Leon, Percival...

Percival waved at Arthur, and he, Leon and Lancelot came over to sit with him. Morgana and Gwen sat down with some other girls that Arthur didn't recognise, and slowly a circle was formed.

Miss Anhora waited for a vague silence to fall, and then she spoke up.

"Well, hello then! It's good to see so many of you, even if I did have to round most of you up myself. Please in future remember when we have rehearsals, and where you need to come for them. Lateness and disorganisation won't be tolerated - we have a lot of work to do."

Arthur saw Gwaine whisper something to Merlin, who laughed quietly. He felt a twinge of annoyance, which he put down to the fact that they weren't taking this serious stuff very seriously.

Arthur caught Merlin's eye, and glared at him. As usual, Merlin scowled back. Glaring Contests such as these between Merlin and Arthur could generally go on all lesson. But then Miss Anhora cleared her throat and started talking again, and Arthur made a big point of looking at her.

"Right, so I'll just make a note of who's here today. I'll call out your name and your role, and you'll respond as usual... Arthur Pendragon, Bugsy?"

"Here."

"Merlin Emrys, Dandy Dan?"

"Yes, Miss."

This went on for some time, though it gave Arthur an opportunity to find out who was playing who. Not that it meant much to him. He'd read an online synopsis of the film, but it hadn't given much detail.

Anyway, Gwaine was playing Fat Sam, Lancelot was playing some newspaper reporter, Morgana was playing Blousey Brown, Gwen was playing Tallulah, and Percival and Leon were members of Dandy Dan's gang.

Miss Anhora then went through a list of some of the rules of rehearsals, which Arthur didn't really pay too much attention to. Don't be late, blah blah, be respectful and quiet while scenes are being done that you're not in, blah blah blah, listen to instructions, blah... You get the picture.

Arthur left that day with a script, a bunch of rehearsal schedules and the sound of Miss Anhora babbling on about what makes a good performer. It was a lot to take on, but it was also incredibly exciting. 

 

\- (Time until performance: six months)

The first proper rehearsal was the next day, and the only people really required to attend were the 'main characters' - Arthur, Merlin, Morgana, Gwen and Gwaine.

Miss Anhora started by producing a template of all the scenes in their production. After a while, she stopped referring to them by their names, but instead by the names of their characters. It was confusing, but they just kind of had to get used to it.

They looked at the first few scenes that each character had, and then the last scene (which was apparently some big song about everyone coming together and forgetting rivalries and love and shit like that).

Eventually, after what felt like ages of blocking scenes and preparing ideas and writing things out, Miss Anhora let them go.

 

\- (Time until performance: five months)

Arthur was loving it. The rehearsals, the early preparations, the learning of lines... Yeah, it was stressful, but it was a good kind of stress.

As a group they'd blocked about a quarter of the play, which, as Miss Anhora reminded them, wasn't bad going. There was still a way to go, but things were beginning to start coming together. Costume and set design ideas had been suggested; it was very 1950's America, which meant suits and slicked-back hair and trilby hats, and seedy streets and old-fashioned diners.

So far, he'd managed quite well to avoid Merlin for the most part. He knew they would be in a few scenes together, but those scenes hadn't been done yet thankfully. Still, if his character and Merlin's really were enemies, then maybe they'd have a cool fight scene.

He got to know Gwen quite well, and realised that she was actually quite nice. Her character, Tallulah, wasn't really, which was quite fun to watch. Gwen was surprisingly good at acting - you'd have to be, to be quiet and calm and play someone who was flirty and kind of bitchy.

Morgana, however, was the opposite. She was sharp in her words and actions, and spent a lot of time shouting quietly at people who annoyed her, which was everyone except Gwen.

Arthur didn't really get why Morgana and Gwen were friends - they were such polar opposites: one sweet, one sour. 

Then he saw Gwen whisper something to Morgana, and he saw her whole face light up and laugh. It was like the sun coming out after a storm and peeking through the concrete clouds. She beamed at Gwen, and Arthur felt like he was intruding upon something, and so he turned away.

But he understood.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rehearsals, rehearsals and yet more rehearsals!
> 
> Also Merlin and Arthur learn lines together, and it goes about as well as you might expect

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm just kind of writing and publishing this all at once, because I am Merthur trash. This was actually originally a one-chapter one-shot, but then I decided it was too long.
> 
> Hope you enjoy! xxx

\- (Time until performance: four months)

Rehearsals for Arthur were at least three times a week for at least an hour. He was still a bit happy to be acting, but the excitement had worn off, to be replaced by a dull annoyance and boredom. He was sick of doing the same scenes over and over again. He was sick of spending all his time learning lines. But mostly, he was sick of being constantly referred to as Bugsy by Miss Anhora ('It helps you to keep in character!').

"Bugsy! You keep slipping out of your accent!"

Oh, and he was sick of constantly having to put on a fake American accent that made every character in his scene crack up laughing.

But, despite all the annoyances, it was a good atmosphere to be in. He started to get to know all of the cast, and there was always a sense of sympathy between everyone whenever Miss Anhora was being irritatingly strict. More often than not, the last ten minutes of rehearsals would be everyone there that day sitting in a comfortable circle, moaning to each other about whatever was on their minds. Like a proper little family.

The whole singing in front of people bit wasn't exactly fun for Arthur. The show opened with a song dedicated completely to Bugsy Malone, and halfway through he was supposed to join in singing it. Which meant memorising lyrics and tune, and make sure he could... you know, actually sing it.

Which meant singing lessons, every lunchtime, with Miss Anhora.

 

"Right, Arthur, you come in on the second 'Bugsy Malone', you got that?"

"I got that the first time you said it, but okay..." Arthur muttered. Miss Anhora just rolled her eyes and just played to backing track. She was used to Arthur's sarcasm.

"... Bugsy Malone.

Hard-headed Bugsy makes his mind up  
Don't mess with Bugsy or you'll wind up  
Wishing you'd left well enough alone  
He's a.. a mountain-"

"No Arthur!" Miss Anhora sighed and paused the music, "It's 'He's a man, a mountain'. Come on, you know this!"

 

Again. Again. And again, until Arthur wanted to throttle whoever wrote the stupid goddamn song.

Then, one lunchtime...

"... Bugsy Malone

Hard-headed Bugsy makes his mind up  
Don't mess with Bugsy or you'll wind up  
Wishing you'd left well enough alone  
He's a man, a mountain,  
he's a rolling stone  
and will he leave you  
sad and lonely,  
crying, I couldn't say but its known  
That everybody wants that man  
Bugsy Malone."

Sung perfectly, every note. When Arthur had finished, he was breathless and pleasantly surprised at himself. Freaking finally!

A further shock came, when applause came from two different places rather than just one. Miss Anhora was clapping as expected, but there was also clapping coming from behind Arthur. Turning round, he was greeted by the sight of none other than... Merlin, who was smirking.

"What are you doing here?" Stuttered Arthur angrily.

"Miss Anhora, Mr Gaius wants to see you in the staff room. I think he wants to know if you need any help managing the play - he's an English teacher, but he does love acting," Merlin addressed the teacher rather than Arthur.

Miss Anhora swept out of the room, looking today like an overgrown bat in her black shawl, leaving Arthur with a Merlin who looked like he was trying not laugh.

"Great singing," Merlin muttered.

"Shut up."

"Hey, I was being serious!" Merlin laughed, but when Arthur glared at him with even more ferocity he sobered up slightly, "Come on, you're not that bad."

Arthur looked at him for a second. Merlin almost seemed like he wasn't joking.

"Thanks?"

"For a prat, that is."

Back to their usual repertoire of insults. Relieved, Arthur rolled his eyes.

"At least we know why you were given a roll that doesn't require singing. You'd deafen half the audience and break all the glass in the windows."

Merlin raised an eyebrow.

"Ouch. And after I was kind enough to pay you a compliment!"

Arthur turned away to put away his script and lyric sheet, concealing a smile and shaking his head. Maybe it was the constant stress of rehearsals, but there was almost a civil alliance forming between him and Merlin...?

"See ya, singing-bird prat!"

"Bye... idiot."

 

\- (Time until performance: three months)

However, any kind of alliance between Merlin and Arthur disappeared pretty quickly when Miss Anhora made them practise together.

It was one of the techniques that Miss Anhora used to make the cast feel comfortable with one another and rehearse at the same time; she called it Practise Partners. Basically, once a week, she'd bring the whole cast in for rehearsal, and pick names out of a hat to put them into pairs. These pairs would then take it turns to practise lines for the scenes that they were in.

So far, Arthur had been made to work with a year 8 boy who just wouldn't take things seriously, Morgana, Gwen, Gwaine and a small year 9 girl who blushed whenever she talked to him.

Then the dreaded news came that today he'd be working with Merlin. When Miss Anhora announced it, he groaned theatrically, and heard a similar sigh coming from Merlin. Miss Anhora glared at them until they were quiet, and reminded everyone with a harsh smile that partners were unchangeable, and complaining would only make matters worse.

 

"You rat, Dan!" Spat Arthur, reading as Fat Sam for one of Merlin's scenes. There was an awkward silence.

"Merrrrrrrlin! It's your line!"

"Mm? Oh sorry... It pays to be a rat in business, Sam!"

Arthur rolled his eyes and broke character.

"Merlin, you have to pay attention! I know you're stupid and everything, but you can read, right?"

"It's not my fault! Your ridiculously fake American accent keeps distracting me!"

"Ridiculously fake? More like ridiculous attractive. Believe me, I've had many a compliment on it. That's probably why you're so distracted..." Arthur teased, this time putting on a way-over-the-top accent just to spite him. Merlin rolled his eyes, looking over at Miss Anhora who was glaring at them for being out of character.

"Come on, let's do your first scene then," Merlin sighed, and started flipping his page over.

"Oh hell no!"

"What?"

"The next scene is between Bugsy and Blousey!"

"So?" Merlin said innocently.

"So? They flirt, and I'm not reading those lines with you, idiot!"

"Aw, Arthur, are you shy?"

"No! It's just I'll be laughing every five seconds at the look on your face."

Merlin saw Miss Anhora start to stand up to come over, and he rolled his eyes.

"Well, we're doing it, so you'd just better get over yourself."

 

"I'm sorry! I'm truly sorry- Oh, it's you, Dandruff," Merlin said as Blousey. Arthur thanked God Merlin didn't put on a stupidly high voice. This would be awkward enough as it was.

"Don't worry, I've had a shampoo since we last spoke. That baseball bat could be classified as a dangerous weapon, you know."

"My mother made me pack it."

"You a sports nut?"

"It's for protection, in case I get robbed," Merlin rolled his eyes again, but at Bugsy not Arthur for once.

"You're a singer?"

"Depends on your taste in music. I'm here about a job."

"Baby, my taste in music is your face," Arthur couldn't resist a Twenty Øne Piløts reference. To his utmost surprise, Merlin completely lost it. He started laughing so hard he looked like he could barely breathe.

The rest of the cast went pretty silent and looked over at Arthur and Merlin, who was trying to control his laughter but failing.

"Bugsy, Dan, is there a problem?" Miss Anhora asked sternly, raising her eyebrows at them.

"Ahm, no Miss," Arthur said as calmly as possible. He could feel Merlin beside him, shaking from suppressed giggles.

"Good. Because if there is a problem, you can always work outside."

They both nodded vigorously, trying not to explode, and soon enough everyone else returned to work and continued to run lines.

When they had both calmed down sufficiently, they turned back to their scripts.

"Jesus Christ, Arthur," Merlin muttered under his breath so no one else would hear.

"Hey, you were the one who got us in trouble with your hysterical laughter!"

"You were laughing too."

"Because your laughter is contagious!"

"Not my fault you tried to use a Twenty Øne Piløts themed pick-up line on me!" Merlin protested.

"Did it work?" Arthur asked, wiggling his eyebrows.

"Not even a little bit."

"Aw, I guess I should try harder then?" Arthur said, and winked at him, "So, should we carry on?"

"Sure."

"..."

"Arthur, it's your line!"

"Oh, right. Umm... Did you get the job?"

 

And so they carried on like that. Every now and then, one of them would say something that sent the other into complete hysterics. It was... nice to be laughing with each other, rather than at each other for once.

Of course, they still completely 100% couldn't stand each other. 

But it was still nice.

 

At the end of rehearsals, Merlin was sorting out his bag and getting ready to go when Arthur approached him.

"You alright, prat?"

Merlin looked up, hiding surprise at Arthur talking to him voluntarily.

"Hey, that's my insult. Idiot."

"Yeah, but it was getting old, you using it," Arthur shrugged, leaning against the door. Merlin sighed and continued trying to shove his script into his bag.

"Good work today," Arthur awkwardly tried to continue conversation, which was very unlike him.

"Yep."

Then Arthur did something that surprised both of them. He crouched down on the floor next to Merlin and took his bag from him, and started re packing it.

"Come on, you're doing it stupidly. Your PE kit's in the way, Merlin..."

Merlin sat back and watched Arthur magically pack away everything.

"Uh... Thanks, Arthur?" He said, as Arthur stood up.

"No problem," Arthur shrugged, "You were being stupid, it was kind of my duty to help."

Merlin rolled his eyes and half-snorted. Of course.

Arthur looked like he was about to say something, but then Gwaine came over.

"Awww, Bugsy and Blousey, the perfect couple! You two are just too darn cute!" Gwaine declared, pretending to clutch his heart dramatically. Merlin looked away quickly. Arthur felt a surprise heat flare across his face, and tried to ignore the fact that Merlin had also gone red.

"Fuck off, Gwaine," Arthur said casually, trying to act like he didn't care.

Because he didn't. He didn't care. Why would he care about Merlin?


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dress rehearsals. Which means costumes. Which means suits, trilby hats and slicked back hair!
> 
> Which means Arthur is screwed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy!! xxx

\- (Time until performance: two months)

"Right. Today, girls and boys, we shall be practising the last scene! This is very exciting, I'm sure! Now, unfortunately, we won't be using splurge guns until the night of the performance. However, we can act!"

"So, Bugsy has just told Blousey that he has two tickets for Hollywood. They emotionally embrace, it's all very cute. Then, all the dancers need to be up on stage doing the 'Fat Sam's Grand Slam' routine as usual. Dandy Dan's gang enter the stage, and then Fat Sam's gang appears. They all fire their guns at everyone. I want all of you on that stage, and I want all of you to be shot. If you get some in the audience, that's also great. Then I want all of you to join together and sing the closing song," she paused, looking at Arthur, Gwaine and Merlin, 

"I particularly want to make a big thing of Bugsy, Dandy Dan, Fat Sam and their gangs hugging and making friends and all that jazz. Okay?"

The group murmured their agreement, and everyone made their way to the starting positions.

 

Arthur and Morgana stood at the front, facing Miss Anhora (the 'audience'). The dancers lined up behind them.

"Blousey, are you gonna get out of the way, else I'll have to take someone else to Hollywood?"

"Sure, wisey," Morgana rolled her eyes, and Arthur mimed producing tickets from his pocket.

"Two tickets to Hollywood," Arthur smirked.

"Oh Bugsy!" Morgana smiled, and gave him a hug. They broke apart, and ran to the side, out of the way.

At Miss Anhora's advice, the dancers started dancing.

Merlin and his gang dramatically came onto the 'stage' from the side, pretending to be clutching guns. Gwaine and his gang did the same. The dancers shrieked and ran to the back.

Everyone ran onto the stage, and awkwardly stood there for a few seconds while the gangs pretended to shoot.

"Pew pew pew," Merlin said into the silence, and everyone around him started giggling. Arthur snorted. Idiot.

"Keep in character!" Barked Miss Anhora, but even she was smiling a little, "Onto the song! 1 2 3 4..."

Everyone joined arms and sang along to the song, swaying in time. Then suddenly-

"Cut!" Yelled Miss Anhora, switching off the music. The singing petered out, "Guys, this whole staying still this doesn't work. I need you to break up and walk round and just hug everyone you see. Go from person to person to person, okay? But keep singing, and smile at the audience! From the top!"

Arthur did as he was told; he hugged Leon, Gwaine, Morgana, Lancelot, Percival...

Then he saw Merlin, awkwardly standing off to the side, and snuck up on him. He gave him a quick hug, and then laughed at the expression on his face when they broke apart.

"Did I make you jump?" Arthur asked, smirking.

"Um... Yeah."

"Good."

"Bugsy! Dan!" Miss Anhora shouted over the music, "Face the audience and don't forget to keep singing!"

Merlin turned around so that he was facing Arthur and the music, and sang. For a second, Arthur listened to him (the guy was actually surprisingly good at it). But then Merlin gave him a look and he remembered he was supposed to be singing too.

"You give a little love and it all comes back to you,  
Da da da da da da da  
You know you're gonna be remembered for the things that you say and do,  
Da da da da da da da

You give a little love and it all comes back to you,  
Da da da da da da da  
You know you're gonna be remembered for the things that you say and do,  
Da da da da da da da..."

As a group, they bowed. Miss Anhora actually stood up and started clapping. For once, she looked pretty happy.

"That was great, guys! Let's do it again, from the top..."

 

\- (Time before performance: one month)

Things were suddenly starting to get very stressful. Rehearsals were now every day of the week, and often went on for a minimum of two hours. Most of the props and scenery had been sorted out, which meant that they no longer had to mime guns (though they couldn't fire the splurge guns at people yet).

The most exciting part so far came one afternoon when Miss Anhora called the whole cast to her room and brought out about fourth cardboard boxes.

"These are the costume boxes for each character. They are labelled, of course. For the minor characters, you have the one costume that you will wear for the scene(s) that you are in, and then you will find that you have a black shirt and trousers for the big final scene. (This excludes Bugsy, Blousey, Dandy Dan, Fat Sam and the dancers)

"The characters that require multiple outfits will find that those outfits are in separate plastic bags that contain a slip of paper telling you when they are supposed to be worn, and if we require you to provide any additional clothes."

"Needless to say, you must treat your costumes carefully. I didn't spend the entirety of the past month putting the packages together and sorting them out for something to go missing or get ruined, okay?"

Arthur opened his box. Inside it were two plastic bags. One contained: a fancy black jacket, a blue shirt, a black tie and black trousers (the slip of paper said 'to be worn for the first half of the show, until after Bugsy and Fat Sam have met and been chased by Dandy Dan. Black school shoes required). The other contained: a tan trench coat, a white shirt, a blue tie, black trousers and a trilby hat (the slip of paper said 'to be worn for the second half of the show. Black school shoes required. Trilby hat worn for the whole performance)

"Woah, Miss," said Arthur. If everyone else's boxes were as well-thought-through and neatly packaged as his, then the only possible solution was that Miss Anhora was magical.

"I'll take you look of surprise as a compliment, Pendragon. If it makes you feel any better, none of the clothes are new - it was what the costume department could scavenge from charity shops."

Arthur knew for a fact that the 'costume department' was made up of Miss Anhora, Mr Gaius, an old Textiles teacher, and a handful of artsy students. He smiled, and thanked her.

 

"Right, folks! I want you to go to the toilets, and get changed into the costumes necessary for your first scenes. Let's try out these clothes on the opening, shall we?"

So they did. Arthur went to the toilets on the second floor, because everyone else was going to the ones on the first floor and he wanted to be able to change in privacy.

He went into one of the stalls and changed hurriedly into the black jacket, blue shirt, black tie and trousers. While he was dressing, he heard someone come in, and footsteps go into the stall next to him. He sighed silently, but didn't really mind.

He came out of the stall, and looked in the mirror. He looked... different in the clothes. It was weird, because they were kind of similar to his usual school uniform. But he still looked more like Bugsy Malone.

Arthur brushed his blonde hair back, and carefully placed the trilby hat on his head. Perfect.

The door to one of the stalls behind him opened. To his surprise, Merlin stepped out.

Merlin looked... good. Like really, really good. He was wearing all black; black jacket, black shirt, black tie, black trousers and black shoes. On top of his black hair rested a black trilby hat.

Arthur nearly stopped breathing. The costume department had done a really freaking amazing job. Merlin looked like some hot, powerful villain person. Arthur mentally slapped himself round the face. This was just Merlin: stupid, dorky Merlin.

Merlin studied Arthur for a minute as well. Then he stuck his tongue out at him.

"You look like you've just seen a ghost," Merlin told him, "Do I really look that bad?"

He moved towards the mirrors and studied his reflection. Arthur hesitated.

"Uh, no. You look... really good, actually," he stuttered. Merlin looked at him with a look of pleasant surprise.

"Oh. Thanks."

Arthur couldn't help noticing that Merlin had a small strand of hair that was falling below the line of his hat. Stupid Merlin... His fingers itched to brush it away, to touch his face... What had gotten into him? Why was he acting so odd?

Unfortunately, Arthur wasn't exactly great at controlling himself. He moved forward dazedly, and reached out. He brushed the strand of dark hair out of Merlin's face... His fingers grazed the soft, pale skin... Their gaze connected and they looked at each other...

"We should be going..." Merlin said softly. It was barely a whisper, but it was enough to break whatever trance Arthur had been in.

Arthur nodded, and stepped back smartly. He walked away, and didn't look back at Merlin.

 

They went back to Miss Anhora's room, to find that the rest of the class had already assembled and were acting out one of the scenes.

Everyone stopped and looked at them when they came in, which wasn't awkward at all. Gwaine in particular made a big show of looking between them and wiggling his eyebrows. Arthur didn't like what he was implying.

Miss Anhora glared at them both.

"Well, now that Bugsy Malone and Dandy Dan finally decided to show up, we can do this properly! We've already done the opening, minus you two, so I think we'll go from the scene where Fat Sam and Bugsy are meeting Dandy Dan. Places, people!"

Arthur and Merlin reluctantly walked over to the stage area to stand with Gwaine. He grinned at them.

"So, what exactly were you two doing in the bathroom?" He said, smirking with a twinkle in his eye. Despite himself, Arthur blushed.

"Getting changed," answered Merlin curtly.

"Oh, is that all?"

Merlin opened his mouth to say more, but then Miss Anhora yelled at them to start.

Arthur's job in the scene was mainly to stand behind Gwaine looking scary. He didn't mind, it was... interesting to watch Merlin act. The way he casually bounced memorised lines and retorts off Gwaine seemed like the most natural and flawless thing in the world. In fact, Arthur knew Merlin enough to know that it was the most natural thing in the world, for him.

But it was still awesome.

The costumes helped a lot to keep everyone in character. Now Arthur could tell almost right away who was who, though mainly the only person he focused on was Merlin... Arthur shook himself mentally.

What was coming over him?

It was definitely because of the hot costumes.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The big performance is here!
> 
> Tensions are running high, everyone's stressed and secrets will be revealed...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... this is the last chapter! I hope you enjoy it! xxx

\- (Time until performance: one week)

One week to go. Seven days and it will all be over.

Arthur simultaneously just wanted to get the performance over and done with, and was also terrified. Yes, Miss Anhora was fast becoming the most stressed and irritating person that Arthur had ever had the misfortune of knowing. Yes, everyone was freaking out about the last minute preparations. Yes, once the performance was over they could all relax. But... What if Arthur mucks it up?

Logic would suggest that, after the hundreds of rehearsals he's done for each scene, it would be nearly impossible to muck it up. However logic was no comfort for the stampede of panicking butterflies that swirled in his stomach every time he thought about actually performing the play in front of everyone.

At least everyone else was as stressed as him. This was half comforting, and half even more stressful - it meant that everyone else had a good reason to be scared of him messing everything up. Well, maybe that wasn't what they were worried about, but it sure felt that way to Arthur.

In fact, one of the only person who was keeping their cool was Merlin.

Most rehearsals, Merlin could be seen making jokes with everyone and talking happily away like he didn't't have a care in the world. Arthur found this pretty surprising; this was incredibly unlike Merlin. I guess the stress of performing brought out fear in some, but also kindness and peace in Merlin.

 

Time seemed to fly by. When there was suddenly exactly one week left, Miss Anhora gathered all the cast together and had everyone sit around in a circle. 

"Well. It's exactly one week until the Big Performance. Next Friday, at 7pm, in the main hall. All of your parents have already purchased tickets, yes?"

She looked around the group, and they all muttered in confirmation.

"Good... I just want to take this opportunity to say... I am incredibly proud of all of you. We've all worked very hard over the past few months, and I personally think we've produced something that all of us can be proud of. Obviously, the hard work isn't over yet. But you've all come so far, and developed so much into skilled performers over a short period of time that... It almost doesn't matter how it goes on Friday."

Arthur and a lot of the people around him looked at her in shock. This was probably the least Miss-Anhora-ish speech ever. 

"But still try your hardest on Friday. Let's blow the entire audience away, okay guys?"

She initiated a round of applause, and everyone joined in with only slight confusion: they were used to her being nit-picky and an annoying perfectionist. This just felt odd.

Eventually, she dismissed them for the day. She made sure to tell everyone to take the weekend to rest; the upcoming week would be intense, and require a lot of patience. All of them were quite happy to oblige in some relaxation, and they left her classroom.

 

Arthur saw Merlin walking by himself, and for some reason decided to go over to him.

"Hey, prat."

"Is that my nickname then?"

"Yeah, I figured it worked better than other words that I can't repeat..." Arthur said with a small smile, scratching the back of his neck, "So, are you nervous about Friday?"

"Terrified," said Merlin calmly and bluntly.

"Really? Because to be honest you seem like the most chill person out of all of us."

"It's weird. I'm fine when I'm talking to everyone else, because they're worried about stuff that they shouldn't be scared about, and it's easy to comfort them. But... I don't know, my worries seem more like they could actually happen," Merlin shrugged.

"I think it's all about perspective. The things that one person is scared of might seem silly to someone else."

"Maybe..."

"What are you scared about, then?" Arthur said, nudging Merlin gently.

"Nah, don't worry about it."

"Merrrrrrlin! Come on, you never know - I might be able to help!"

Merlin sighed.

"Alright, fine, but only because I know you won't stop annoying me until I tell you... I'm scared that I'll just completely go blank and forget all my lines."

"Is that all?" Arthur asked with an incredulous smile, "Merlin, everyone's scared about that!"

"Yeah, but what if I just go blank right in the middle of a scene? What if I can't find one of my props? What if my splurge gun stops working?"

"If you forget your lines, just improvise - it's easy; just act like you're having a normal conversation and make something up. Your props will all be there, I can basically guarantee it. And if your gun stops working, then just mime. Besides, Miss Anhora said she'll be putting tables covered in cream pies along the side of the stage for the final scene anyway... D'you have any more urgent fears that you want me to address?" 

Merlin gave a small smile, and shook his head. Arthur laughed, and punched him gently in the arm.

"It's gonna be great, don't worry."

 

\- (Time until performance: one day)

Thursday was worst day by far. Everyone came into school an hour before lessons were due to start, and met Miss Anhora for another lecture on how proud she was, and to squeeze in some more rehearsal time. The entirety of break time and lunchtime were spent in the Drama classrooms, running lines and putting the finishing touches on scenes.

Then, after school, the big rehearsals began.

Everyone changed into their costumes, and filed into the main hall so that they could use the stage. Arthur tried to control the raging nerves that rose in his stomach at the mere thought of getting up on that stage to perform. He stood silently with Lancelot, Leon and Percival, and listlessly listened to the quiet conversations going on around him.

Eventually, Miss Anhora called them to order. Those who were needed for the opening scene (Roxy Robinson, Dandy Dan's gang, and Fat Sam for a voice over) started setting up, and everyone else waited backstage.

Arthur stood uncomfortably to the side, trying not to worry too much. Then the music for his song started up, which was his cue to enter the stage. His eyes caught Merlin's, and the dark-haired boy gave him a wide, way-too-cheery smile, which he tried his hardest to return.

Arthur played his part well, and he sang reasonably in tune. He started to get used to running between the stage and backstage, and entering the stage fully in character, and leaving it relieved and increasingly more tired.

He liked watching everyone else perform as well. Gwaine had mastered the American accent by far the best; Gwen was an amazing singer; Morgana could apparently look sweet and innocent when she wanted to; and all of the younger kids had grown into loud voices and wide smiles. And, of course, Merlin was amazing and villainous and funny, but that was to be expected.

Anyway, at the end of the big final scene, when they were all bowing and singing, Miss Anhora actually stood up and started whooping. She even went to wipe away tears from her eyes. (Though maybe that was just because she loved the dramatic effect)

"Yes! That was brilliant! I loved it, and so will they on Friday! We'll show all of those bitches in Cenred's Theatre School exactly how you put on a show! Perfect!"

Arthur sighed in relief, and everyone else did the same. Maybe they'd do alright after all.

 

\- (Time until performance: one hour)

Shit. Shit. Shit.

Arthur was pacing back and forth through the small room backstage. He was fully in costume, in his suit, tie and fancy hat - maybe that was why he was pacing.

Or maybe he was pacing because there was only one fucking hour left until they were going to be on stage. The seats in the hall had already started to fill up with parents and family members, and it was only a matter of time until his own parents showed up... The thought of his dad watching him flounce about on stage made his stomach do cartwheels. But he didn't care what his father thought, right? Or at least he shouldn't. All that mattered was that Arthur liked Drama, and that he was proud of the show that he was part of.

Most of the rest of the cast were sitting around the room, in varying states of panic. Some of them gave Arthur odd looks for his pacing, but that didn't stop him. He just had to keep doing something, else he'd drive himself mad with his own thoughts.

All of a sudden, there was a presence next to him, and footsteps matching with his. Someone had joined his pacing.

He didn't have to look to know it was Merlin.

"You doing alright?" Merlin muttered, so that no one else would hear.

"No. Not really," Arthur said in a voice that didn't really feel like his, and he felt a bubble of panicked laughter rising in his throat. This really wasn't the time or the place to start a fit of hysterical giggles, so he made a special effort to squash it.

"That's okay. It's perfectly natural to be nervous before something big. In fact, it's a really good reflex," Merlin said, in a voice that sounded surprisingly soothing to Arthur, "But you don't have to be nervous. It's gonna be great."

Arthur just shook his head. Merlin decided to try another tactic.

"Stop pacing? I'm getting kinda dizzy," he said, and so they stopped and leaned against the wall, away from everyone else.

"Look, Arthur, don't let this get to your head or anything, but you're actually really good at Drama and acting and stuff like that. Okay? I've been rehearsing with you for about six months now, I should know. So you're going to get out there, and you're going to amaze everyone with your freaking awesome acting. Sound good?"

Arthur shrugged, but it was better than nothing. 

They stayed against the wall for a good ten minutes, in a comfortable silence, just happy with each other's presence. Then, after mustering all of his courage, Arthur turned to Merlin, and started to speak.

"Merlin, I just wanted to let you know that... You actually look really great right now. Like really hot. And you're going to be awesome when we get on stage as well," Arthur looked at the floor instead of Merlin. He was trying to be as blunt as possible, so that hopefully it would be clear that he meant what he said.

"Why are you being so nice to me?" Merlin said, with a smile pulling at the corners of his mouth.

"Well. I've known you for years now, and I've always been... A bit of a prat really. I figured this might be a bit of a nice change."

"You weren't that bad."

"Wasn't I?"

"Nah. It was always quite fun, hating you and arguing all the time. I love a good challenge."

Well, I'm sorry to take that away from you."

"Don't worry. This is nice too," Merlin said, and Arthur finally looked at him in the eye. They held each other's gaze, and the shared smiles felt contagious. There was something unspoken behind their words, and Arthur felt himself longing to push against the distance between them and close it...

Then Miss Anhora spoke sharply and shattered the bubble of tranquility that had encased them.

"Right, folks, this is it. The curtains go up in ten minutes. Remember, we've practised all of this so much it'll be virtually impossible to forget it. But if you do, just... Improvise! The show must always go on. Don't let me down tonight, guys. You're gonna be great, I can feel it. Good luck!"

Miss Anhora was clearly as nervous as all of them, if not more, and her 'speech' gave a lot of confusing mixed messages. She wasn't exactly brilliant at giving pep talks.

But when she suggested a big group hug, everyone swarmed together and embraced. About forty kids and one teacher, all hugging in the middle of the backstage room. It was all very nice and emotional - but, as Miss Anhora said, the show had to go on.

Before anyone knew it, the group was dissolving, and Miss Anhora was going onstage to introduce the show.

 

\- (The big performance!)

"Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, I would like to introduce the incredibly talented students who are about to blow your minds! I've had the pleasure of working with them for the past six months, and it has been brilliant fun, though hard work too! I'm extremely proud of them, and you should be too. So, without further ado, I would like to introduce... Camelot High School's very own version of 'Bugsy Malone'!"

The entirety of Miss Anhora's introduction could be heard clearly right backstage, as could the tremendous clapping that followed.

Roxy Robinson took his cue to run out onto the stage, closely pursued by Dandy Dan's gang. Gwaine began his narration.

"Some say that even if it was raining brains, Roxy Robinson wouldn't even get wet..."

 

Arthur stood against the wall, anxiously tapping his foot. Any second now his 'Bugsy Malone' music would start, and he'd enter the stage. He was mainly trying to focus on not throwing up.

He felt someone join him against the wall. Unsurprisingly, it was Merlin. He waited for the inevitable 'you're gonna be awesome' speech that got less effective every time it was repeated. But it didn't come. Clearly Merlin was as terrified as Arthur was.

Then Arthur heard the opening notes to 'Bugsy Malone'. His heart leapt into his throat; now was his moment.

His legs felt like jelly, unstable and useless. But somehow he managed to get to the door.

Then a quiet voice came from behind him:

"Arthur? ... Blow them away."

Arthur gave a small grin, a quick flash of familiar confidence. Then he was out, onto the stage.

 

The first thing he noticed was the lighting. It was so bright onstage, and so dark in the audience. The sheer contrast was bewildering and confusing to the senses - Arthur nearly walked smack bang into one of the cardboard lamposts.

But then the familiarity of the music washed over him, and he felt himself calm slightly. Just slightly, but enough. He knew what he had to do: pace around the entirety of the stage, then step into the spotlight, and start singing in time for the second "... Bugsy Malone".

The words seemed to flow from him like some kind of otherworldly power. He knew them off by heart, and it was almost kind of boring, just standing there looking into the darkness, singing a song that he had sung a thousand times before.

All too soon, the song was over. The applause from the audience broke over his head like a wave, and adrenaline flooded through him. On impulse, he gave a quick bow in the direction of the darkness, which earns him a few whoops and laughs. Then he walked off the stage with as much confidence as he could muster.

"Well, they sounded like they loved you," was the smug greeting from Merlin. They shared a smile, and a secret feeling seemed to pass between them.

 

For the next two hours, Arthur got used to running on and off the stage. He knew his cues exactly, and knew where he had to be at which times. He surprised himself by forgetting exactly none of his lines, and (to his knowledge) no one else had any problems either.

There wasn't much time for conversation once the show had started, and Merlin and Arthur were often too busy focusing on the scenes to talk. But every time one of them would leave to go onstage, a good-luck smile would be shared, and every time one of them came back, a congratulatory grin would be given.

Arthur found the quick changing of his costume a bit difficult, but he just about managed it.

 

Then, all of a sudden, it was time for the final scene.

Arthur and Morgana opened it, talking about tickets to Hollywood and embracing. The audience 'awwwwwed' a lot, but that was only to be expected.

Dandy Dan's gang came from one side, and Fat Sam's gang came from the other. Everyone else stood in a huddle in the middle of the stage, looking out at the opposing sides and the audience. They all made sure to look terrified, as if they were in danger of more than getting some cream on their clothes.

On the count of three, chaos exploded from either side. 

Each person in each gang fired as much as their splurge guns could take. The characters in the middle grabbed the cream pies on the tables in the back, and attacked them right back. It only took a few minutes for everyone on the stage, and a surprising amount of the audience to be completely covered.

In unison, the gangs threw aside their guns. The simple music of the final song started, and the entire cast merged together in a sea of suits, hats and white cream.

It didn't take much for Arthur to locate Merlin. He hugged everyone he walked past, but stopped when he came to the small, dark figure right at the back of the mass of people. 

"So your splurge gun didn't run out then?"

"No. Though please don't say I told you so."

"I wouldn't dream of it... You know, the white splurge all over you suits you," Arthur smirked, and winked. Merlin groaned and buried his head in his hands.

"That is officially the worst thing you have ever said."

"Aw, you loved it."

Without waiting for Merlin to look up and deny it, Arthur embraced him tightly. He wrapped his arms right around the small frame of the guy, and even swayed along the music a little.

After a few seconds, they awkwardly broke apart and just kind of... looked at each other. They'd both changed a lot - but they were still the same in a lot of ways. Maybe that's what mattered so much.

They moved closer, before common sense won out. The audience would probably be incredibly confused and not entirely happy if the splurge-covered figures of Bugsy Malone and Dandy Dan started making out on stage.

So instead they made do with linking arms with everyone else around them, and joining in with the last chorus.

"You give a little love and it all comes back to you,  
(Da da da da da da da)  
You know you're gonna be remembered for the things that you say and do,  
(Da da da da da da da)..."

Everyone bowed multiple times in a confusing but happy rush, and the audience were on their feet clapping. Then the curtain was clumsily pulled across, and the show was over.

 

\- (After the performance)

Arthur was backstage again. This time, he was the only one there - everyone else was greeting their parents and families. He knew he'd have to see his mother and father in time, but he was kind of trying to out it off for as long as possible. He was sure they'd both be perfectly nice, but he didn't want anything to ruin the the ecstatic energy that had stayed with him even after the show was finished.

He was just picking up his bag to leave, when a figure came in through the door.

Merlin.

Who else would it be?

Merlin was back in his normal, non-cream-covered clothes. He still had his hair slicked back Dandy Dan style, though. And (unsurprisingly) Arthur still thought he looked incredibly hot. Maybe it was just because he was... y'know, Merlin.

"Hey Arthur," Merlin said, in a reasonably casual voice. He didn't feel casual, though.

"Hey," said Arthur softly.

"So... Still think I look, what was it you said? Oh yeah, really hot? Even though I'm not in costume?" Merlin asked, trying to fake confidence with a nervous smirk. Arthur smiled at him, and moved closer.

"I always think you look really hot."

Before either of them could talk any more, their lips collided.

The resulting explosion of warmth and happiness wiped everything else from Arthur's mind. All that mattered was Merlin, and the taste of Merlin's mouth, and the feeling of Merlin's hair beneath his fingertips. Anything else was just a blank canvas. There were no worries, no negativity, no...

The couple drew apart, just a little. Their lips no longer touched, but their noses bumped against each other and their foreheads pressed together. Little puffs of Merlin's warm breath brushed against Arthur's mouth; a strand of Arthur's hair tickled against Merlin's face.

"You're still a prat, you know," Arthur's voice was strangled but soft, and he felt rather than heard Merlin laugh.

"And you're still the biggest idiot I've ever met."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So um that's the end! I really hope you enjoyed this, please leave any feedback below! 
> 
> (This is actually the first fic I've ever finished. I know it's not a long fic, but still... wow!)
> 
> Love you all xxx

**Author's Note:**

> Fun fact: Miss Anhora is named after the unicorn dude who appears to Arthur and Merlin after he kills a unicorn.
> 
> (Mainly because he led the boys to one of my favourite Merthur moments - when they're on the beach fighting over who's drink the poisoned goblet and they're so stubborn and in love)


End file.
